


short scene idk

by xcipher



Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2018-01-25
Packaged: 2019-03-09 08:37:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13477734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xcipher/pseuds/xcipher





	short scene idk

Cerise climbed down the cracked and uneven steps of the derelict building. The night air was chilly and she pulled her dirty jacket tighter around herself. She was not looking forward to walking through the city alone, even though she knew she wouldn't be. Glancing up, she was able to make out two yellow eyes at the rooftop. _Try not to give away the fact that I am here,_ Vali had said. _I’ll be right above you but you can’t alert anyone of my presence. I’ll come to your aid if need be._ Vali had given her a small pocketknife she found in a drawer before they left so she wasn’t completely defenseless, but Cerise still didn’t feel too assured. Knowing she couldn’t put off the inevitable, she attempted to straighten herself up and set off down the sidewalk.

In spite of herself, she peeked back at the rooftops as she walked and was able to make out a faint silhouette leaping from building to building alongside her. Vali was almost completely silent as she traveled, only occasionally landing with a hollow thud on a metal roof. Cerise took this time to attempt to fathom everything Vali said to her. She still couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt and her stomach churned, but decided to put that from her mind for now and look at the bigger picture. It was no secret that mankind had made contact with an alien race; that news was over a decade old. But Cerise, along with the rest of the general population, was under the impression that contact had been strictly long-distance. The public was not made aware of the fact that actual, physical contact was made. And now, humankind had in their possession alien DNA and had been experimenting with it. Cerise was hardly interested in science, but had always been involved in politics due to her father’s position. This was big news indeed.

Several blocks had gone by without any incident, and Cerise’s confidence was gaining. Only a few cars had driven by and not a single person was out on the streets. The silence and stillness was almost unsettling for a city so large. They had looked through a dated magazine before they left their safehouse and found the address of a small convenience store less than a dozen blocks away. All that was left was to hope it was still in business. She started to find the situation almost comical. Not even two weeks ago, she was hosting a party at her family’s modern estate, surrounded by a hundred people her age all vying for her attention and trying to get in good with her. Now she was walking through a bad part of town, in the same filthy and ripped up clothes she'd been wearing for days, being escorted to a store she would never have been caught dead setting foot in by a living weaponized science experiment. She was so lost in thoughts of real-life superheroes and dastardly schemes that she didn’t notice the man until it was too late.

She was stopped dead in her tracks by a huge, brutish-looking thug stepping out of the shadows of an alleyway. He was almost as broad as he was tall, and reeked of alcohol and body odor. Panic set in immediately.

“Kinda far from home, ain’t ye, pretty girl?” the big man wheezed, taking a step toward Cerise. She gripped the pocketknife tightly, mentally prepping herself to use it. “An’ wot’s a cute young thing doin’ all the way out here by yerself, eh?”

Cerise backed up, glancing pleadingly up at the rooftops. _Where was Vali?_   
  
The thug had his arms spread open wide and Cerise brandished the knife, trying to make it look like she meant business. It looked ridiculously tiny compared to the rest of him. She wondered if he’d even feel it. He looked down at the small knife in her hand and snickered.   
She’d backed up to the wall of the adjacent building and didn’t have anywhere to go. He was so close that she could feel his foul breath upon her. He practically eclipsed her field of view.  
  
Before Cerise had to decide whether to scream, stab, or run, and in what order, a dark figure descended from the rooftop with a muffled thump. In a flash, Vali had grabbed a hold of the brute’s outstretched left arm, claws digging in deep, and twisted it around backwards with a pop. He yelped hoarsely, teetering for a moment in surprise, and was quickly brought crashing down with the help of a well-placed kick to the throat. He was slightly stunned by the violent impact. Vali kept her foot on his neck, pressing down hard, talons pricking his skin. She leaned down close to his face and hissed, her crests standing straight on end and her tail fanned out. His eyes took a second to focus on her face, and when they did, he started to scream.   
  
“What—what the hell is this thing? Gerroff me! Get it off!” The thug began to thrash about, but Vali held her ground, a low rumbling growl erupting from deep within her chest as thin lines of blood started to appear on his throat. He got the message and held as still as possible, trembling.  
  
“Cerise, get behind me,” Vali barked, increasing the pressure on his neck. Cerise did as she was told.   
  
“Vali…what are you going to do to him?” Vali’s eyes had narrowed to yellow slits, but at the sound of Cerise’s voice they widened a bit. Her crests relaxed slightly.   
  
“He’s seen too much. The impact of his head smashing into the concrete was supposed to knock him out, but his skull must be too thick. He wasn’t supposed to see me.” The thug’s throat gurgled and wheezed pathetically as he breathed. Cerise tentatively placed a hand on Vali’s arm and she stiffened.

“I—I don’t think you should kill him. He didn’t lay a finger on me.”

“He would have!” Vali snarled.

“Please. It just… it doesn’t feel right to me. He’s messed up on drugs, he needs help, not slaughtering.” Vali processed this for a moment and then straightened up a bit.

“Don’t make me regret this.” She grabbed the thug by the collar of his grimy shirt and hauled him upright, bringing his face just inches from hers. His dislocated arm hung uselessly at his side. Vali’s bright yellow eyes bored unblinking into his as she hissed out her warning. He couldn't look away.

“You had a bad night and took too many hard drugs, then got into a fight. They knocked you out and left you here in the street. If anyone asks, that’s what you say. Should you decide to tell anyone what you saw, no one will believe you. If I start hearing strange rumors, I will hunt you down and separate your throat from your body myself. Is that clear?”

Tears were streaming down the brute’s face as he nodded and gurgled unhappily.

“Good.”

The thug saw stars as a swift right hook collided audibly with his jaw and put him in a deep sleep. Vali shoved his slumped body away from her with disgust and straightened up.

“Coward. I should have put him out of his misery.”

She glanced back at Cerise, who was looking at her with some degree of terror and a little bit of awe. Vali softened ever so slightly.

“I apologize for that. I was programmed to go into extreme protective mode when anyone placed in my charge is threatened. I…might have gone overboard.”

Cerise merely nodded and squeaked out an acknowledgement.

“If you’re in decent condition, we should get going. I can’t risk anyone else seeing me. I would have to terminate them next time.” With that, Vali did what she was built for and scaled up the building with lightning speed. She disappeared over the edge of the roof momentarily before poking the top of her head out, and with her eyes shining down at Cerise, gave a brisk nod.

Cerise drew a shaky breath and took a second to scan the area. No one was around to see a thing. She set her jaw and kept moving, and with Vali silently traversing the rooftops behind her, made it to their destination without further incident.


End file.
